More than 5.2 million American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) people live in the United States today. Spread mostly throughout the western United States and Alaska, many live mainly on or near reservations and rural communities. The AI/AN population is incredibly diverse, representing 566 federally recognized tribes.
AI/AN people are disproportionately affected by diabetes. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, AI/AN adults are more than twice as likely as white adults to be diagnosed with diabetes, and AI/AN women are 2.3 times more likely than non-Hispanic whites to die from diabetes. At nearly 16%, the age-adjusted prevalence of diabetes in the AI/AN population is the highest of all U.S. racial and ethnic groups. In some communities, >50% of AI/AN adults have type 2 diabetes. In addition, this population has long experienced lower health status than other Americans, including a lower life expectancy and disproportionate disease burden, which may be attributed to inadequate education, disproportionate poverty, discrimination in the delivery of health services, and cultural differences rooted in economic adversity and poor social conditions. (author introduction)